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A New Airline Class for the Child-Intolerant

By Hope Reeves August 29, 2013 11:07 amAugust 29, 2013 11:07 am

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My sister just returned from a plane trip with yet another tale of a cranky adult growling at a couple desperately trying to soothe their child. It was an hour-and-15-minute flight from Baltimore to Providence, R.I., and, even between two adults and a bag stuffed with toys and books, the parents couldn’t seem to stop the wails.

“I would take that boy into the bathroom and duct-tape his mouth shut!” my sister heard a graying woman hiss loud enough for the parents, rocking and shushing the howling toddler, to hear. “And look at those girls over there,” the woman said, jabbing a finger at my sister’s children contentedly watching an iPad (with headphones). “Can you believe what it takes to keep kids quiet these days?”

This woman is the perfect candidate for Singapore Airlines’ new ScootinSilence class (or what we might call the Snarlers’ Section), which aims to accommodate people who can’t tolerate even the possibility of being seated near the chaos of youth. The “upgrade,” now available on the airline’s budget carrier, Scoot Airlines, guarantees passengers cabin mates over the age of 12 for a mere $14. Located just behind the business section, it offers 41 seats, in rows 21 to 25, featuring a 35-inch seat pitch — four more inches than coach seats — so grumpy grown-ups can lean back and enjoy their flight child free.

Scoot’s move comes on the heels of rival AirAsia X’s recently introduced Quiet Zone, a seven-row section that excludes children under 12, and Malaysia Airlines’ baby-free first class and upper deck sections. AirAsia X’s zone is home to “minimal noise with no disturbances” and “special ambient lighting,” the airline says on its Web site, “because we know that sometimes all you need is some peace and quiet for a more pleasant journey with us.”

While Western airlines have yet to add child-free sections, Oliver Smith of The Telegraph’s travel section writes that an online poll suggests that “unruly” children were travelers’ biggest annoyances — more annoying than drunken fellow passengers, a surly flight crew or an overly talkative neighbor. The Telegraph’s plan for parents?

Beleaguered parents might consider taking the advice of Christina Diaz and Michael Rubinstein. The American couple, concerned about taking their twin boys on their first flight last September — a five-hour hop from San Francisco to Washington DC — handed out “apology bags” to other passengers. They contained sweets and a note declaring: “We’re twin baby boys on our first flight and we’re only 14 weeks old! We’ll try to be on our best behavior, but we’d like to apologize in advance just in case we lose our cool, get scared or our ears hurt. Our mom and dad (AKA our portable milk machine and our diaper changer) have ear plugs available if you need them.”

That sure was thoughtful of Ms. Diaz and Mr. Rubinstein, but should it be necessary? Children are messy. They are noisy and not particularly considerate. For the most part, we parents go to great pains to keep our children quiet and engaged when we travel, and we suffer far more than the woman traveling solo with her novel and headphones four rows down when we can’t. Maybe the answer really is confining the intolerant to their own section (and making them pay extra for it is a nice touch).

About

We're all living the family dynamic, as parents, as children, as siblings, uncles and aunts. At Motherlode, lead writer and editor KJ Dell’Antonia invites contributors and commenters to explore how our families affect our lives, and how the news affects our families—and all families. Join us to talk about education, child care, mealtime, sports, technology, the work-family balance and much more